Traffic police’s latest enemies on roads of Bengaluru: Debris, trash

SUCH A CASUAL ATTITUDE TOWARDS PUBLIC SAFETY: (Above) Nandidurga Road has a sand trap for bikers; (left) Seshadripuram Main Road has the potential to break the neck of motorists or pedestrians just because somebody didn’t do his job properly

Highlights

Palike needs all the help it can get, so Bangalore Traffic Police steps up

100 spots where garbage affects traffic have been identified; men in white will note registration numbers of motorists who throw trash on the roads

By Iffath Fathima

Illegal dumping of garbage and black spots in the city have long been the bane of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). Now they have an unlikely ally in the Bangalore Traffic Police (BTP) in dealing with the garbage menace.

What does the traffic police have to do with garbage, you may ask? Well, garbage and debris dumped on the streets affect free flow of traffic and this is where the traffic police come in.

Tired of garbage mounds obstructing the movement of traffic and leading to traffic snarls, the BTP has volunteered to watch out for people who dump garbage on the streets, inform the law and order team to take action against such people and also inform the BBMP to clear such black spots.

Additional Commisioner (Traffic) P Harishekaran has ordered the traffic police department to keep a watch on those who dump garbage and debris on the streets.

“Garbage does not come under our purview, but we think the traffic police can help the BBMP in great way. Since the traffic police are always on the move from early morning hours to the night, they can keep a watch on people who dump garbage.”

Many commuters are inconvenienced by the presence of garbage on busy roads. One such case is the, KP Agrahara, 15th main. Commuters and nearby residents say that the pavement was demolished and reconstructed last year and ever since the debris has been left behind on the pavement. Since it obstructs commuters, they have taken to travelling on the other side of the road, causing traffic chaos, due to incoming traffic. But now the commuters can heave a sigh of relief since the BTP has asked the BBMP to clear the spot.

There are more than 100 spots in Bengaluru where traffic congestion is caused mainly due to garbage dumps. “On a two-way road, movement is restricted when traffic from one side moves to the other side of the road, due to garbage. Two-way vehicle movement is affected, and it becomes really difficult to handle the traffic. Tipping the BBMP about such spots will help them locate these blackspots and clear them,” said Harishekaran.

Speaking about another difficult stretch, Harishekaran added, “The stretch from Madiwala to Central Jail is a 20 km-long stretch and garbage is piled high on the left side of the road. To avoid the garbage, commuters from both sides of the road would only use the right side of the road, leading to severe traffic jams every day. We have asked the BBMP to clear this spot at the earliest,” he added.

West of Chord Road hasn't been spared either

Limited powers

Unlike the marshals or law and order police, the BTP can’t impose fines if they spot someone dumping garbage. In such cases, the BTP will note down the registration number of the car or the bike used to dump garbage. The details are then sent to the law and order police who will then impose penalties on the violators. In the case when the BTP sees a person dumping garbage, they could either stop them from doing so or take a photo of the violations and send it to the law and order police.

“As per the orders, we have already started keeping a watch on garbage or debris dumpers. We are also looking out for black spots on arterial roads and letting the BBMP know about them. With this we are keeping a track on lorries who dump waste and forwarding their registration numbers to the law and order team,” said a traffic police officer.

About 162 cases have already been booked against violators under section 283 of Indian Penal Code which says, whoever by doing any act causes an obstruction to the public way can be punished.

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